And, as usual, it was Alex who lookeddirectly at me and said, “You know that the instant you’re surethat he’s the right man, your first urge will be to kill him,Gnaeus.” I did open my mouth, but nothing came out, simply becausehe was right, and I knew it; however, he was not through. “In fact,I think it might be a good idea that you’re not present when wequestion him about how to recover our money.”
This was too much, and I protested, “While Isee what you’re saying about when we grab him, there’s no way I’mnot going to be there when he’s being questioned.”
“So what are you going to do if hetells you that the money’s gone?” Alex countered, and before Icould stop myself, I snapped, “What do you think?”
He only nodded, but it was left to Septimusto speak up.
“Gnaeus, what do you think? That he’s just going to blurt outwhere we can find that money the moment we point agladius at him?” He shook his headas he continued firmly, “No man is going to give up that much moneywillingly. And, if you get…” he paused to find the right word,“…angry…” he held up a hand, “…I mean, like you did with thisBerdic, any chance we have of finding that money will be gone.You’d be a liability in that case.”
I still believe this was harsh…but it wasalso true, and even in the moment I knew it, yet I confess that Idid not take this well. Indeed, I stormed out of the cabin andscrambled up the ladder to the main deck, striding over to the sideto fume in private. So absorbed was I in my own thoughts that, whenI felt a gentle hand on my shoulder, I behaved less like aCenturion of Rome and more like a frightened girl, which madeBronwen laugh.
“I’m glad you think it’s funny,” Igrumbled, then, still in my mood, I made a point to turn away fromher to lean on the railing, staring out into thedarkness.
There was very little cloud cover, and thesky above was littered with glittering stars, and I was reminded ofhow, when I was a boy, I loved to lie on the roof of our villa andjust stare up into the heavens. Under other conditions, I wouldhave liked to actually lie down and do as I had as a boy, but I wasstill sulking because Septimus understood the truth, that I washighly unlikely to be able to restrain myself if Aviola refused toimmediately submit.
“Why are you upset, mylove?”
Whether this was calculated on her part ornot, it was the first time she had used an endearment of any kind,nor had she ever uttered that word that, as I was still learning,is so wonderful and terrifying, all at the same time.
I suppose this was why I answeredhonestly, “Because he’s right.” Hearing the words encouraged me tocontinue, “It’s always been a struggle for me…meum mel.” She did not reply to the use of theterm we Romans use for those we love, but I saw the happiness inher eyes that told me that, even if she did not understand thewords, she comprehended the meaning. “I’ve always had this…thinginside me, a beast,” I usedthe word my father had, “that I can’t really control.”
“You mean like what happened withBerdic?”
I nodded in answer to her question, then asmuch to fill the silence as anything, “He warned me not to foolmyself into thinking that I could have any control over it.”Suddenly, something occurred to me, and as usual, before I couldthink, I blurted out, “Do you know how to read?”
Her cheeks colored, but she made sure tokeep her eyes on mine as she answered, “No, I did not learn toread. At least,” she allowed, “not words. But,” her eyes flashedwith a pride that I would come to know very well, “my father taughtme how to recognize your Roman numbers, along with our own systemof numbers, along with the Greek.”
“Well,” I replied immediately, “thenlearning to read Latin will be no challenge for you.”
This obviously puzzled her, so she tiltedher head as she asked, “Why are you asking this?”
“Because,” I answered, “once you learnto read, I want you to read the account that my father, and mygreat-grandfather wrote, because it might explain things betterthan I can.”
Now she was obviously confused.
“What does this have to do with whatwe are talking about?”
“Because I want you to understand whyI am saying the things that I’m telling you,” I took her hands. “Idon’t want you to ever feel as if I’ve misled you in anyway.”
“I do not believe that you could everdo anything like that.” She did not hesitate, applying the samepressure to my hands that I was to hers. “I know your heart, GnaeusPullus. I know that you are an honorable man, and that you area good man.”
“I’m not sure about that,” I tried tojoke. “At least the last part. But I do try to behonorable.”
“Gnaeus,” she tightened her grip on myarm, almost to the point of being painful, “I know that, when themoment comes, when you see this man, and when he refuses to tellthe truth at first, that you will not do anything that woulddestroy your family’s chances to
